Apparatus for heating vegetable oils



Dec. 27, 1938. J. STEWART APPARATUS FOR HEATING VEGETABLE OILS Filed Marh l2, 1938 I INVENTOR 39m/Amt :ATTORNEYS Patented Beez?, 1938 UNITED STATES APPARATUS Foa HEATING vEGE'rABLE oILs Joseph Stewart, Elmhurst, N. Y.

Application March 12, 1938, Serial No. 195,450

In Great Britain October 7,' 19,36

1 Claim. (Cl. 257-184) This invention relates to improvements in apparatus for heating vegetable oils, the invention being particularly useful forheating edible vegetable oils (such as cocoanut oil, palm oil and cotton seed oil) in treating suchV oils for the purpose of deodorizing or of Adehydrating such oils.

The primary objects off-the invention are to make provisions for rapidly and elciently heating the oil and simultaneously freeing the oil of water vapor and all volatile products released during the heating of the oil.

In the accompanying drawing:

Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional view showing an oil heating apparatus embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a detail sectional View on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1; and

Figs. 3 and 4 are detail horizontal sectional views showing certain modifications of the heating apparatus illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2.

Referring to the construction illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2, I0 designates a casing or chamber having leading from its bottom an oil outlet and having leading from its top a vapor outlet or exhaust I2 which is connected to a suitable condenser and a suitable vacuum pump (not shown) for withdrawal of vapors from casing IU by suction and the condensation of the withdrawn vapors.

Within the casing I is a vertical series of horizontally disposed oil-heating pipes I3 the axes of all of which pipes lie in the same vertical plane. The pipes of the series are connected by return bends I4 for circulation of a heating medium-throh the series of pipes, the Iowermost pipe extending at one end out of the casing through a suitable stuing box I5 to a suitable source of supply of heating medium, and the uppermost pipe extending at one end out of the casing through a suitable stufling box I6 to a suitable exhaust for the heating medium.

Within the casing I0 and above the series or bank of pipes I3 is an oil delivery trough I1 which extends longitudinally of the uppermost one of the pipes I3 and has formed in its bottom substantially throughout the length of the pipes I3 a narrow oil-discharge slot I8 located in the vertical plane of the axes of the pipes I3 and very close to the top of the uppermost one of the pipes I3 as shown. T-he two longitudinal edge walls of slot I8 may be serrated as shown T'he discharge slot of trough I1 should be close enough to the top of the uppermost one of the pipes I3 to discharge onto said pipe a very thin sheet or lm of oil which will contact that pipe directly above the pipe axis and split, without spattering `or spraying, into thinner films each of half the thickness of the lm passing through the slot to said pipe, each of which thinner films will flow down a different side of the uppermost pipe to the bottom of said pipe. To eiect a transfer of each said thinner lm r(or division or half ofthe lm passing through the slot of the trough) from each pipe I3 to the one below Without splashing or spattering, there is provided between each two immediately superposed ones of the bank of pipes I3 avertical plate 20., the plates of the series of plates 20 all lying in the vertical plane of the slot I8 and the axes of the pipes I3. Oil dropping from the lowermost one of the pipes I3 will be discharged through oil outlet' I I. The bank of pipes I3 may be heated internally by passing steam, hot water, or hot furnace gases, etc. therethrough.

Oil to be heated is delivered into the receptacle or trough II by an oil supply pipe having dis- I a smaller pipe 22 welded at one end to the casing and extending at its other end through a stufng box 23 weldedin one end of pipe 2|. Suitable packing rings 24 are held in the stuiling box by a gland 25, threaded studs 26 and nuts 21, thus sealing one end of the annular space between pipes 2| and.22, said space being closed at the other end thereof by a sealing ring 39 welded to the two pipes. Pipe 22 is free to expand and contract longitudinally independently of pipe 2|. Each pipe 22 in the modified construction is open at one end to a heating medium supply header 28 and at its other end to a heating medium discharge or outlet header 29. The stufling box is preferably provided with a water-jacket space 3U having a water inlet 3| and a water outlet 32. The closed annular space between the pipes 2| and 22 is lled with a heat-conducting uid such as distilled water, mineral oil, a mixture of diphenyloxide and diphenyl, or other heat-conducting liquid having a. suitably low vapor pressure at high temperature.

In Fig. 4 is indicated a modified structure in which for each tube or pipe I3 of Figs. 1 and 2 a pipe 33 is to be substituted, each pipe 33 being welded at both ends to the casing I0. Ordinary electric heaters 34 of the immersion type are screwed into internally threaded bushings 35 5 welded in opposite ends of pipe 33, said heaters extending into a body of heat conducting fluid confined in pipe-33, said fluid being of the type described in connection with the modified structure shown in Fig.3. A

In `modifying the structure of Figs. 1 and 2 in accordance with Fig. 3, plates 20 should be employed between pipes 2l, and such plates should be employed between pipes 33, when as described in connection with Fig. 4, pipes 33 are substituted for pipes I3.

In the construction shown in Fig; 3, a filling pipe 36 for the heat-conducting liquid is horizontally arranged above and close to the oil heating pipe 2l and its two discharge ends are connected to opposite ends of the said pipe 2|.

A supply pipe 31 for the heat-conducting liquid leads to pipe 36 and ashut-off valve 38 is provided in the supply pipe. When the space between pipes 2| and 22 is lled with the heatconducting liquid and valve 38 is.shut off and heat passed through pipe 22, the liquid between pipes 2l and 22 will promote uniform internal downward without splashing or spattering or breaking up into drops, and are heated at their adjacent faces and, at the same time, are sub- 4jected at their outer or non-adjacent faces to free and immediate release. from the oil of vapors.

and volatile products resulting from the application of heat to the descending extremely thin films of heated oil.

As is well known, the maximum temperatures to which the oil should be raised are dependent upon the purpose of treatment by heat and, of course, should not be so great as to burn or otherwise adversely affect the oil. For example, as is well known, the desirable oil temperature for dehydration of vegetable oils is approximately degrees Fahrenheit, and the desirable temperature for deodorizing such oils is approximately 450 to 500 degrees Fahrenheit.

' What I-claim is:

.An apparatus for heating vegetable oils comprising a chamber having at its upper end a suction outlet for volatile products 'and having at its lower end a discharge outlet, a vertical series or bank of horizontally disposed oil-heating tubes extending transversely of the chamber with the tube axes in a vertical plane, an oil discharging trough having a discharge slot in its lower side, the wall on each side of said slot being serrated to cause the oil to flow in an even iilm to the top side of the uppermost tube of the bank, said heating tubes adapted to-contain a heating fluid. f

' JOSEPH STEWART. 

